Page 158 of Crown of Briars
“You mean after all the secrets you kept from me?” I barked. “Your demonstrations of loyalty meannothingnow, Lor. Swear with your fae blood, or I swear to the gods, you will be sentenced to death for treason. Hopefully your death will bring about the end of the curse.”
Her head reared back, rage and hurt flashing across her face. Her eyes darkened, and she let out a low, menacing hiss.
I didn’t even blink. I only continued to glare at her, unfazed by her anger.
She had no right to resent me for asking this of her.No right.
“Fine,” she gritted out, drawing a small dagger from her belt. “You asshole.” She dragged the blade along her palm, and black blood bloomed from the wound. “I, Tislora of the Shadow Court, swear by my fae blood that I amnottethered to the curse cast by Jessinda the witch, nor will my death bring about the freedom King Varius seeks for his people.”
Energy hummed in the air, tingling across my skin.
Tislora shot me a hateful look. “Is that proof enough for you?”
“Did Jessinda have a child?”
Her eyes shuttered. “What?”
I repeated the words slowly. “Did Jessinda have a child?”
Her lips grew thin, her face turning a shade paler.
I stepped toward her, my hands gripping her shoulders tightly. I resisted the urge to shake her until she answered me plainly. “Tell me, Lor.”
“Yes,” she breathed, her voice shaky. “Yes, she had a son. But—But he has no magic. He poses no threat to the Shadow Court.”
“He does if his mother included his bloodline in the language of her spell—as insurance that it would carry on after her death.”
Tislora’s face slackened in shock. “But I—how do you know that?”
“If Jessinda included this language in her curse, is it possible?”
She was muttering frantically now. “I didn’t think… He had nopowers,and… and I didn’t know the terms of the original curse. There was norecordof it—” She broke off, her lip trembling. “Shit.” She covered her mouth with her hand, letting her dagger clatter to the floor. “Shit, how did I not see it? If the terms of Jessinda’s curse allowed it, even a powerless heir could carry the magic of a curse like that.”
“Yes,” I said. “Especially if he produced a female heir who could continue the witch line.”
She shook her head vigorously. “No. He did not marry or sire children. He returned to the home of our ancestors. The Earthen Court. For decades now, he has lived the life of a mortal.”
I went still as death, something clicking into place in my mind. “What did you say?”
“The witches of our kingdom originally came from the Earthen Court. There are still witches there even now, living in hiding. My brother returned there and…” She faltered at the look of shock and horror on my face. “Did you not know this?”
Slowly, I shook my head, my breathing now sharp and ragged.
The witches came from the Earthen Court.Sybelle’scourt.
Sybelle.
I had to find her.Now.
My body was still buzzingfrom my time in the library with Varius. I kept the jeweled dagger clutched in my palm, a lazy and contented smile on my face as I made my way back to our chambers. I found my pouch of gemstones in my cloak pocket and, one-handed, managed to wriggle out the moonstone.
Only then did I finally release Wraith Killer.
Exhaustion and throbbing agony coursed through my body, but it was quickly chased away by the heated warmth of the healing stone. I groaned, hunching over as the intense sensations fired through my body with relentless intensity. Flames boiled my blood and warmed my bones. I clenched my teeth from the force of it. A terrible ache pulsed between my legs, but the moonstone soothed the pain, healing every part of me.
When it was finished, I loosed a breath and gasped for air, dropping the moonstone back into the pouch. My head reeled from the overwhelming and nauseating array of magic that had crashed through me so violently.
As much as I longed to marinate in the hot springs for an hour or two, I only allowed myself a quick bath before hopping out and dressing in a simple aqua gown. I relished Varius’s reaction to the seductive dress I had worn earlier, but it hadn’t been entirely practical.
